After reading Treatment and Consent of Service Users under the Mental Health Act, read also Who are Service Users and What are their Rights under Republic Act No. 11036 or the Mental Health Act
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Informed consent refers to consent voluntarily given by a service user to a plan for treatment
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Service users must provide informed consent prior to the implementation by mental health professionals of any program of therapy
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A service user may set out his or her preference in relation to treatment
I n our previous article, we mentioned that a service user refers to a person with lived experience of any mental health condition including persons who require or are undergoing psychiatric, neurologic or psychosocial care.
When treating a service user, his or her informed consent is a requirement. What is an informed consent?
The law says:
Informed consent refers to consent voluntarily given by a service user to a plan for treatment, after a full disclosure communicated in plain language by attending mental health service provider, of the nature, consequences, benefits, and risks of the proposed treatment, as well as available alternatives.
Service users must provide informed consent in writing prior to the implementation by mental health professionals, workers, and other service providers of any plan or program of therapy or treatment, including physical or chemical restraint. Also, a service user may set out his or her preference in relation to treatment through a signed, dated, and notarized advance directive executed for the purpose.
Is there an exception to the informed consent?
The law says:
Yes.
During psychiatric or neurologic emergencies, or when there is impairment or temporary loss of decision-making capacity on the part of a service user, treatment, restraint or confinement, whether physical or chemical, may be administered or implemented pursuant to the following safeguards and conditions:
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In compliance with the service user’s advance directives, if available, unless doing so would pose an immediate risk of serious harm to the patient or another person;
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Only to the extent that such treatment or restraint is necessary, and only while a psychiatric or neurologic emergency, impairment or temporary loss of capacity, exists or persists;
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Upon the order of the service user’s attending mental health professional, which order must be reviewed by the internal review board of the mental health facility where the patient is being treated within fifteen (15) days from the date such order was issued, and every fifteen (15) days thereafter while the treatment or restraint continues; and
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That such involuntary treatment or restraint shall be in strict accordance with guidelines approved by the appropriate authorities, which must contain clear criteria regulating the application and termination of such medical intervention, and fully documented and subject to regular external independent monitoring, review and audit by the internal review boards.
Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices specializes in business law and labor law consulting. For inquiries, you may reach us at info@alburolaw.com, or dial us at (02)7745-4391/0917-5772207.
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